Clothes-drier.



VP. D. RIORDAN.

CLOTHES DRIER.

APPLIUATION FILLED D110. 8, 1911.

Patented Aug. 13, 1912.

2 BHEETS-BHEET 1.

WITNESSES ATTORNEYS COLUMBIA VLANOOIAPN 10., IAIDUNGNN. 0. cl

P. D. RIORDAN.

CLOTHES DRIER.

APPLICATION FILED 111:0. a, 1911.

Patented Aug. 13, 1912.

2 SHEBTSBHEET 2.

WITNESSES ATTORNEYS I UNITED STATES PATENT OFFICE.

PATRICK D. RIORDAN, OF NEW YORK, N. Y.

CLOTHES-DRIER.

To all whom it may concern:

Be it known that I, PA'IRICK D. RIORDAN, a citizen of the United States, and a resident of the city of New York, borough of Manhattan, in the county and State of New York, have invented a new and Improved Clothes-Drier, of which the following is a full, clear, and exact description.

Improvements to which this invention relates find their widest field of usefulness in large cities, where the vacant spaces between buidings are comparatively small and are so surrounded by walls on all sides that the lower stratum of air in such spaccs laden as it is in most cases, with moisture, noxious exhalations and floating (lust particles, and deficient as it also is in oppor tunities for circulation, as well as in means of its renewal and purification-is rendered physically and hygienically unsuited for the drying of clothes hung out in it.

My present invention provides a means for largely if not wholly overcoming these objections, by furnishing an apparatus by means of which clothes hung upon it near the street level may be thereafter lifted to any reasonably desired height, such as that of an ordinary building; thus taking advantage of the cleaner, purer and better circulating strata of air at such heights.

My apparatus is moreover adapted for tenement use, so that the tenants of every tenement in a given house may enjoy the advantage of high, clean and freely circulating air in which to dry clothes, a separate, composite clothes line set apart for the use of each tenement, and of being able to use the same without stepping off their own floors.

Nor are the advantages of this apparatus confined to large cities; for, out in the country where mud, slush, frost and snow constitute the natural condition of the average court-yard at certain seasons of the year, my new clothes drier may be fitted to a rail fence, a tall pole or to the side of a barn, and by its employment the maid or housewife will greatly minimize her liability to contract serious diseases, which without such an apparatus she at present runs, by walking through or standing in slush and snow while hanging out the family Wash on ordinary clothes lines.

Again, my new clothes drier renders needless the scurrying around to remove clothes from the drying lines when a shower Specification of Letters Patent.

Application filed. December 8, 1911.

Patented A11 13, 1912.

Serial No. 664,557.

of rain suddenly makes its appearance; for, to protect the clothes on my new apparatus from being drenched by a sudden shower of rain, nothing more is necessary than to pull down the waterproof shades that surround itthe drier is from the beginning covered over at the top, with this exigency 1n v1ew.

My present invention comprises a suitable framework designed to be pivotally supported at its top and bottom by hinging with a pin extending upward from the outer end of each of two brackets fixed to the outer side of a building, or other support, at the top and bottom of the apparatus; also, a plurality of devices connected therewith and with one another so as to constitute a multiple series of composite, rotatable-ladder clothes lines, any given ladder of which may be used independently of its fellows and upon the rounds of which garments or other fabrics to be dried or aired may be hung out.

Reference is to be had to the accompanying drawings forming a part of this specification, in which the same characters of reference indicate the same parts in all the views.

Figure 1 is a front elevation of my improved drier in position between two win dows, outside a building; Fig. 2 is a horizontal section thereof taken on a plane passing through the lower part of the apparatus; Fig. 3 is a central vertical section thereof taken on a plane passing longitudinally from the front to the rear of the drier; Fig. 4 is a top plan of the framework; Fig. 5 is a view of one of the front lower corners of the drier seen from front to rear; Fig. 6 is a section on the line 6-6 of Fig. 5; and Fig. 7 is a perspective view showing a portion of an endless rope and of the twin transverse cords, twisted over each other, between which the fabrics to be dried are passed and by which they are automatically held in place.

My improved drier comprises top members 1, arranged in the form of a rectangle, and bottom members 2, similarly arranged; the top members and the bottom members being connected by corner posts 3. To the top and the bottom of the main framework of the drier are attached the brackets t, pivotally connected to said framework at 5; these brackets being secured to the face of a wall, partition, or other support so as to sustain the framework of the drier thereupon. The tops of the corner posts 3 are connected by bent diagonal rods 6, and the mid points of these rods 6, where they intersect each other, are joined by means of a ring or other suitable device to which is attached the rope or cable 7. This rope or cable 7 passes over a pulley 8, carried upon the face of the wall above the bracket 1, and by means of this rope or cable 7, the end of which will be secured to some point accessible to the operator, the framework can be lifted off and onto the brackets 4, at will, as when repairs become necessary. The numerals 9 represent a pair of rods pivotally connected to the sides of the framework. A pair of these rods 9 will be provided at the level of each window sill: their outer ends are bent to form hooks to engage staples or eyelets 10, secured to the face of the wall, or the window sill, to prevent the drier from swinging from side to side.

Secured to the top frame members 1 at the front and rear of the drier are a plurality of guide wheels or pulleys 12, mount-- ed upon staples 11. A corresponding number of pulleys 12 is carried by the framework adjacent to the bottom thereof, but the staples 11 for the two lower lines of pulleys are carried by the two adjustable transverse bars 13 which are slidably disposed between the corner posts 3 and the brackets or guides 17 at the front and rear of the framework of the drier, just above the frame members 2. These transverse bars 13 have, each, two transverse guide pins let near their ends. These transverse guide pins 14 are also slidably disposed in the slot 15 of the corner post 3 and in a corresponding slot 16 in the bracket or guide 17. The guide 17 is preferably of metal (all metallic parts being galvanized to avoid rusting the clothes); and is secured to the corner post 3 and projects outward from the front and rear of the framework, as shown. The spring 13, one at each corner, is fixed below to the superior surface of the transverse bar 13, and fixed, above, to the inferior surface of the block 18, which is slidably secured between the guide 17 and the post 3. Pivotally connected to the block 18 is the adjusting screw 19, which passes through the upper horizontal part of the guide 17. By means of the springs 13, a force can be exerted upon the bars 13, and this force can be regulated by adjusting the screw 19 and block 18, for a purpose which will appear later.

Each pulley at the bottom of the framework is connected with the pulley directly above it, at the top of the framework on the same side, by means of an endless rope 20. Vhen all of the pulleys on the same side are thus connected in pairs the endless rope 20 connecting each pair is connected to the corresponding endless rope 20 at the opposite end of the apparatus by two transverse cords 21, loosely twisted over each other so as to allow washed fabrics to be easily passed between them. The corresponding endless ropes 20 are all similarly connected at a convenient distance apart so as to form a series of endless rope ladders whose rounds or steps are the transverse cords 21 which form the clothes lines proper of the apparatus. The length of the cords 21 is somewhat greater than the distance between the grooves of the opposing pulleys in order to secure the passage of their ends along the said grooves without pulling the endless ropes 20 out of place; and further, so as to prevent a similar result if they should contract or shrink under the effects of rain.

It will be obvious that if a clothes drier of this character be erected in connection with an apartment house it would secure to the tenants an independently operable clothes drier for every floor in the house, in even the smallest of courtyardssince the apparatus would occupy a superficial ground area of not more than three by five feet. Ordinarily, my improved drier will be not more than one story high, and one or more can be employed by connecting the same to the wall of a building adjacent each floor. If desired, however, it can be built high enough to serve several stories at once, to be used in common by the tenants thereof. In such a case the rods 9 will have cords attached thereto so that they can be disengaged by the occupants of the upper floors at any time when the same may be needed for use.

Fixed to the corner posts 3, at a convenient height for the operator, and at each floor along the height of the apparatus is a cross bar 27, one at each end of the drier. Fixed to this bar 27 is a pin or hook 29, and a looped cord 28 attached thereto, for and near each endless rope 20. To hold a given rope ladder in any desired position, while or after hanging clothes upon it, the looped cord 28 is passed around the endless rope 20, above and below any given step 21, and its free end hooked over the hook 29.

The numeral 22 represents a cover or awning over the top of the clothes drier. It extends a few inches beyond the framework 1 at the top.

The numeral 23 represents shades or ourtains set around the sides and ends of the drier, under the awning 22 and overlapped by it. They are attached in the usual way to the corner posts 3 and are designed to be drawn down over the sides of the apparatus to protect its contents from rain and from direct sunlight which is injurious to some fabrics, to conceal the family wash from the curious public and, by covering, render it inoffensive to the eye in all neighborhoods.

The operation of my new clothes drier may be briefly described as follows: It is preferably mounted on the outer face of the rear wall of a building, between windows, and the brackets by which it is supported stand out sufliciently far from the wall to insure its rotation on its hinges to a convenient position for the operator at either window, by means of the rods 9. If, after erecting the apparatus upon its hinges or pivots 5, it be discovered that the endless ropes are too slack to hold the lines 21 sufliciently taut, the slack can be taken out by forcing down the transverse pulley-bearing bars 13 by means of the spring adjusting screws 19. The apparatus having thus been made ready for hanging clothes upon it, the operator pulls down the nearest round 21 of the near half of the outermost ladder and secures it in place with the looped cord 28 at either end of the apparatus. This line 21 is covered with clothes by passing them between the loosely twisted cords 21, always leaving a twist or two of the cords between each piece of clothing. These twists by impinging on the borders of the fabrics take the place of clothes pins. The cords 28 are then unfastened and the next cord 21 is pulled down, fastened and covered in the same wayunless the operator prefers the old method when clothes pins may also be used. This successive pulling down of the rounds or cords 21 and covering them with clothes is continued till one-half of the ladder is covered. This half is all passed over the pulleys at the bottom and up to the top of the apparatus; then, the round 21 that happens to be next the operator is bound by the loop of cord 28, thus holding the clothes in the desired position till they are dry. This operation is repeated with the other ladders, always commencing with the near half of the outermost unfilled ladder.

If it be desired to protect the contents of the drier fro-m direct sunshine the shades 23 on the sunny side of the apparatus are pulled down. If rain threatens or falls all the shades are pulled down till the storm is over and then let up. Thus there need be no taking in and again hanging out of the family wash, in case of rain, where my new clothes drier is in use. \Vhen all the wash is hung upon the drier it is swung away from the window and held in position by the rods 9.

Should the drier need repairing it can be readily dismounted from its pivots 5, lowered to the ground and again lifted into position by means of the cable 7.

I wish to have it understood that I may make whatever changes in the shape size and relative arrangement of the parts, fairly fall within the scope and spirit of my invention.

Having thus described my invention, I claim as new and desire to secure by Letters Patent:

1. In a clothes drier, the combination of a framework having a plurality of pulleys arranged along the opposite sides at the top thereof and a plurality of )ulleys located along corresponding sides at jacent the bottom thereof, bars upon which the pulleys adjacent the bottom are mounted, endless cords connecting the pulleys at the top to the pulleys adjacent the bottom, means connected to said endless cords for supporting clothes to be dried, and resilient means engaging the bars for the pulleys at the bottom to keep said endless cords taut.

2. In a clothes drier a framework having a plurality of pulleys arranged along opposite sides of the top thereof, and vertical guideways adjacent the bottom of the framework at the said sides, there being slots in the framework adjacent the said guidevays, horizontal bars disposed for moving in the vertical guideways, guide pins on the bars for moving in the slots in the framework, pulleys mounted on the bars, endless cords connecting the pulleys at the top of the framework with the pulleys mounted on the horizontal bars, transverse cords connecting the endless cords at one side of the framework with the endless cords at the other side of the framework, and springs for holding the bars downward.

In testimony whereof I have signed my name to this specification in the presence of two subscribing witnesses.

PATRICK D. RIORDAN.

WVitnesses l/VM. F. NICKEL, J 011}: P. DAVIS.

Copies of this patent may be obtained for five cents each, by addressing the "Commissioner of Patents, Washington, D. 0. 

